Changing the Past Changes the Present
by Lady Redemption
Summary: When Aang is suddenly transported 100 years into the past while meditating, he's faced with a choice: stay and stop the war from beginning, or try to find a way back to the future. But is his decision the best choice or the worst mistake he ever made?
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: **I started writing this over a year ago, but I quit after a couple months because I got writer's block, then eventually just forgot about it. But recently I found it again, and I've decided to try and work on finishing it. And since I started long before we even knew the premiere date of Season 3, it's completely different from what has actually happened. But, hey, that's okay, right? Right.

Anyway, I'll be quiet now, and just let you all read. Hope you enjoy the first chapter!

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"Concentrate, Twinkle Toes!"

Toph's voice cut into Aang's mind, breaking off his thoughts. "Huh?" He blinked. Aang had spaced out, thinking about Sozin's Comet. "What are we doing?"

Toph sighed, exasperated. "You're supposed to be earthbending."

"Oh..." Aang remembered that he'd been having his earthbending practice with Toph...but he didn't remember the move he was doing.

"You have no idea where we left off, do you?"

Aang flustered slightly. "...No...not really..."

Toph threw her arms in the air and let out a frustrated breath. "I give up! That's the third time you've spaced out! No more practicing for today!"

"Third?!" Aang asked. "I don't remember spacing three times!"

"Of course you don't," Toph mumbled, plopping down on the ground and putting her chin in her hands.

"I...I'm sorry..." Aang said.

"Mm-hm."

Aang hung his head a bit. What was wrong with him? Why couldn't he focus?

"Avatar," came Iroh's voice suddenly. "Come have some tea. Perhaps it will clear your head."

Aang turned to his firebending teacher and smiled slightly. He was glad to have someone as understanding as Iroh with him.

"Thanks, Iroh." Aang sat down beside the former-general.

"Here." Iroh handed him a cup of steaming tea. "This should help you."

"I hope." They heard Toph mumble.

Aang sighed, drinking his tea. He really didn't blame Toph for being mad at him. He wished he could focus like he used to, but it seemed all he could think about was the upcoming battle with the Fire Lord...

"Aang! Your tea!"

Now it was Iroh's voice that cut into Aang's mind.

"Huh? Ah!" Aang flinched as he felt some hot liquid on his shoulders. He looked down and saw that he had spilled his tea on himself while he was thinking. Out of the corner of his eye, Aang saw Toph slap her forehead. This was embarrassing.

"Uh...I think I'll go wash off..." Aang mumbled, a blush creeping to his cheeks. He handed the empty tea cup to Iroh and headed down to the stream, where Katara was waterbending.

Even while walking to the stream, Aang's mind wandered to the Day of Black Sun. What if it didn't work? With Princess Azula ruling Ba Sing Se, how could they get a good, strong army to attack the Fire Nation? This nagged at his mind as he reached the stream.

"Aang?" came Katara's concerned voice. "What happened?"

He was dragged out of his thoughts yet again. "Huh? Oh, uh, I was drinking some of Iroh's tea and, well, I...kinda spilled it," Aang replied, blushing as he scratched the back of his head.

Katara stopped her bending and rushed over to Aang. "You're not burned, are you?" She knew how hot Iroh made his tea.

"I don't...think so," Aang replied, proceeding to take off his shirt. When it was off, he went over to the water, threw his shirt in, left it there for a few moments, then airbended it up and out of the water, drying it in the process.

Aang caught it as Katara came over. She examined his shoulders, putting her hands on them, and said, "No, you're not burned...But promise me you'll be more careful?"

Aang's face turned red when Katara's hands had touched his shoulders and somehow he managed to say, "I promise. I don't know what I was doing..."

"You were thinking about the battle again, weren't you?"

Aang was silent. It amazed him at how Katara seemed to see right through him. "Yeah...I was..." he replied quietly.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Katara's voice was filled with gentleness and concern.

Without thinking, Aang shook his head and looked away from Katara. "No."

There was an awkward silence for a few minutes. It was Katara who broke it: "All right. But if you ever want to talk, I'm right here."

Aang nodded. That was what he loved about Katara: she was so understanding and didn't pressure someone into telling her something if they didn't want to.

"I'm going to head back to camp." Katara turned to head back. "Are you coming?"

Aang shook his head. "I want to stay and think for awhile."

"Okay. See you back at camp." Katara waved, walking away.

Aang waved back.

When Katara was out of sight, Aang put his shirt back on, then sat down on the bank. He pulled his knees up to his chest, crossed his arms on his knees, and laid his chin on his arms. Aang stared at the water, his mind wandering to Sozin's Comet and the upcoming battle yet again. What was he going to do? How was he going to get through this?


	2. Chapter 2

Later that night, Aang was having trouble sleeping. He tossed and turned, but couldn't sleep. The ground seemed even more uncomfortable than usual. Eventually, he decided that it was impossible for him to sleep. Perhaps meditating would help.

So Aang got up, made sure everyone was sound asleep, then got on his glider and swooped into the air. As he flew, Aang looked down at the earth beneath him, searching for a nice, quiet spot for meditation. He soon found one in a small clearing and landed there. Aang put up his glider, then sat down in his meditation state. The young Avatar took deep, relaxing breaths.

Then, suddenly, as the wind blew, Aang's eyes opened, glowing a soft white. His Airbender tattoos began to glow the same as his eyes...

* * *

Aang suddenly awoke to the bright sunshine in his face. He must have fallen asleep while meditat-

Wait! This didn't look like the place he'd been meditating! There'd been a forest around the clearing, but there were no trees here. Where was he? He looked around.

People were bustling about. Nothing too hostile...until Aang saw what they were wearing. Fire Nation clothes! So he must've been in the Fire Nation...but why? He and his friends hadn't gone to the Fire Nation, and he certainly hadn't flown all the way there on his glider. He didn't fly over any body of water, let alone an entire ocean!

Then a horrible thought struck him. What if he'd been captured! But after a few seconds of panic, Aang realized that that couldn't be the answer. It he'd gotten captured by Zuko or Azula or any Fire Nation soldier for that matter, he'd be in a jail cell by now. Plus, the people seemed to act like they didn't see him. If he was a prisoner, they would most likely say something like, "Look, it's the Avatar! He's escaped from jail! Get him!"

However, that still didn't tell him why he was there. And what about his friends? Where were they? Aang hated not knowing where he and his friends were. And how could her even ask? If he asked someone from the Fire Nation, they'd surely turn him into the Fire Lord. What was he going to do?

Aang thought about this for awhile...and decided to risk it. If they captured him, he would find a way out of it. He usually did anyway.

"Excuse me," Aang said, walking up to a woman. The lady did not reply.

Aang cleared his throat. "Excuse me," he repeated, trying to reach up to tap the lady's shoulder but couldn't because of her height. She still did not reply.

Slightly annoyed from being ignored, Aang walked in front of her and waved his arms around. "Hello?! Excuse me! Yoo-hoo! Right here!" But she did not seem to hear him and just walked off.

_Why was I just ignored?_ Aang asked himself, irritated. _I was standing right in front of her!_ But he decided to try someone else, this time a man.

"Excuse me?" Aang started, but the man didn't turn around. "Excuse me, mister..." Aang reached up to tap the man's shoulder, but as he touched the man's shoulder, his hand went through!

Aang gasped in surprise and shock and looked at his hand. _No way..._ He then realized what had happened, but lifted his hand to the sun just to make sure. He saw right through his hand. Aang went pale. He wasn't in his body! He was there in spirit!

"Oh no, where's my body?! Where am I?! The Spirit World? But then why are all these Fire Nation people here?! Avatar Roku! Where are you?!" Aang panicked. What was he doing here?! Where was his body?! Why-

"Did you hear that one of Fire Lord Sozin's sons will be going to the Earth Kingdom soon?" a man suddenly said, cutting into Aang's panicking mind.

"Yeah, I heard about that," a woman replied. "Wasn't he going there to talk to the Earth King or something?"

"That's what I heard."

Fire Lord Sozin? Why was he being talked about 100 years after the war started? And his son! Why was his son - well, one of them at least - being talked about too? The one that had to meet the Earth King was dead. Why would everyone start talking about it 100 years later?

"It's just too bad Avatar Roku died, though," Aang heard another woman a small distance away say. "He was a great Avatar."

"I wonder who the next one will be," said a different woman.

"It's been 12 years, but the Air Nomads won't tell until he's 16," replied the first woman.

"I guess we'll just have to wait another four years."

"What? Avatar Roku died over 100 years ago!" Aang cried. "And what do you mean you'll have to wait four years until you know the new Avatar? I'm right here!"

The women continued talking to one another, as if they hadn't heard him. _Oh, right._ _They can't hear me. But what do they mean they have to wait four more years? I'm right-_

Then it hit him. Sozin? Sozin's son? Twelve years after Roku's death? Aang's eyes widened in realization.

He was 100 years in the past.

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**Author's Note: **Short, I know, but again I wrote this over a year ago, and back then I disliked writing really long chapters. XD R&R!!


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note:** I am so sorry it took me this long to update, but I really wanted to finish writing chapter six for this story and chapter three for the story _Fight for Peace_ that Flopsy95 and I are writing (if anyone wants to check it out, there's a link to it in my profile). And...I know this chapter is extremely short, too, but I promise to update sooner, if that makes up for it at all. XP And I changed the title...because I like this one better. P

Anyway, I'll stop talking now so you can read it.

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"100 years in the past?! But how? Why?" Aang panicked. He noticed he was panicking a lot, but he didn't care. "How did I get here?!" It took a few seconds of thought before he knew. "Meditating! That must be it! But how did I do it? This has never happened before! So why now?! And where's my body?! Here? 100 years in the future? At the Southern Air Temple?"

Aang stopped. The Southern Air Temple. It wasn't destroyed! He could see his friends again! He could see Gyatso again! This over-joyed Aang. He missed Gyatso so much and he could see him!

Aang's joyful thoughts lasted only a minute until they came crashing down. First of all, how could he get to the Southern Air Temple? There was absolutely no way he could walk and he didn't have his glider. Second of all, even if he did get to the Temple, he wouldn't be able to talk to Gyatso, and Gyatso wouldn't be able to see Aang. Besides, Aang was technically there anyway. Gyatso was probably talking to him right now.

Aang sighed. So what was he to do? Figure a way back to the future. Yeah, that was what he had to do. Perhaps if he meditated, he could go back. It was worth a shot.

Aang once more sat down in his meditation state. He took deep, relaxing breaths, concentrating on the future...

"Fire Lord Sozin is worried about sending his son to the Earth Kingdom, I heard," said a male voice. "I don't think he trusts the Earthbenders very much."

Aang was jerked out of his meditation. What he just heard reminded him of something Iroh said:

Aang had asked Iroh why the Fire Nation started the war. Iroh had replied that Fire Lord Sozin started the war because one of his sons had been sent to the Earth Kingdom for a meeting with the Earth King about trade and other business between the Fire Nation and Earth Kingdom. However, it hadn't gone as planned. The son never reached Ba Sing Se, for while the son was traveling to the capital, there'd been a landslide. Rocks fell from a high cliff when the son was walking by and killed him and most of the soldiers traveling with him. The few that survived claimed that Earthbenders had caused the rockslide.

Sozin, of course, was furious. He knew he shouldn't have sent his son, yet he did, and Earthbenders had killed him. The Earth Kingdom protested when they heard about it. The Earthbenders claimed that they had nothing to do with the death of Sozin's son, but the Fire Lord would not believe them. And a few months after the incident and the disappearance of the Avatar, unexpectedly, Sozin started the war in the month of his comet.

Aang didn't believe that Earthbenders had been the cause of Sozin's son's death, but he couldn't prove it. Or could he? If he was 100 years in the past, before the son's death, perhaps he could stop it from happening! And in turn, maybe stop the war from ever starting! Yes, he was going to try. He was going to stop this war!


End file.
